This invention relates to apparatus for processing tubular textile fabrics and, more particularly, to apparatus used with textile calender machines for spreading and stretching such fabrics.
Textile calender machines for pressing and sizing fabrics, and especially tubular knitted fabrics, in preparation for use of the fabric in the manufacture of clothing and the like are well known. Such machines normally include apparatus for steaming the material as well as a series of heated calender rolls for pressing the fabric after the steaming operation. Since most modern fabrics are manufactured by knitting yarn into continuous cylindrical tubes, more recent prior existing calender machines have included spreading and stretching apparatus for laterally stretching the tubular material before its insertion in the calender rolls. The steaming and pressing operations, therefore, size the tubular material into proper condition for later manufacturing processes.
A common problem with prior known calender machines using such spreading apparatus, has been the pinching, tearing, or other damage of the tubular fabrics as they are drawn into the calender rolls. Such damage results from the fact that the stretching apparatus, which is normally completely encloed by the tubular fabric, is drawn tightly against the mating calender rolls as the opposing layers of the tubular fabric are drawn therebetween. The force of the spreading apparatus being drawn against the rolls, pinches the fabric causing resultant excessive stretching or tearing. This problem has been accentuated recently with the advent of numerous types of more delicate, knitted tubular fabrics which are less resistant to such abrasion and stress than prior known fabrics.
Another problem encountered with prior machines has been the inability to accurately control the speed at which the entire width of the tubular knitted fabric is drawn into the calender rolls. Since the spreading apparatus over which the tubular fabric is drawn resists and thereby slows down the feeding of the material along the edges of the material, the center of the material tends to be drawn into the calender rolls at a faster rate causing a warping or arcuate stretching of the material across its width.
The present invention solves these and other problems in providing a spreading and stretching apparatus which prevents the pinching and tearing of even delicate knitted tubular fabrics as well as the accurate control of the feeding of the fabric over the spreading apparatus into the calender rolls.